School Projects

Roaming Robots not only prides itself on being the Home of Robotic Entertainment, but in the last few years has also developed an extensive range of educational projects, which could be run at your school, college or university.

Designing and building robots is a subject which brings both excitement and knowledge into the classroom environment in a fun and unique way. We all know how important it is to promote engineering, and some say there is a lack of good British engineers these days. Well, we are working hard to change this. All of our projects strive to inspire the younger generation and try to get away from this preconception that engineering is about just getting your hands dirty. We show that it can also be creative, rewarding and fun!

You have seen the machines on the TV show Robot Wars, and with our projects you are given the opportunity to experience it in the flesh. We have a wide range of projects which can be tailored to suit your requirements. Some pictures from our previous educational events can be found here.

Super Ant Weight Construction Workshops

Teams consisting of up to 5 individuals are challenged to build their very own Super Ant Weight Robot (250g), split into sessions if required.

The main components, such as motors and radio equipment, are supplied, and the teams are given the appropriate materials (cardboard, pens, glue etc) to construct their robots from scratch. Staff are on hand to lend support, advice and technical help, to ensure that within the allotted session, each of the groups end up with a finished, working robot.

Then for the real test!!!

Placed into the arena, each of the robots is tested to see who will be victorious, in their very own little competition. This can be run very briefly in either 30 minute sessions, a couple of hours, or throughout a whole day. It could even run for a longer period meaning more advanced robots can be built, to suit different event requirements.

Although main components are supplied, after each session they are removed from each robot in preparation for the next group. They can however be purchased so the robots be kept, depending on the budget. The purchased robots are able to take part in events around the UK and entitle the owner to free entry to Robot Wars events!

Example - Woking Library - Family Learning Week

Super Ant Weight Workshop

3 Sessions

6 Pairs (parent/child) per session

2 hour slots.

9 robots built in one day

“Excellent fun!” Michael, aged 9

“I want my dad to build me one now please!” Sam, aged 7

“Best day ever!” Peter, aged 7

Local Schools Feather Weight Challenge

Involving local schools, participants are given the challenge to build their own Feather Weight robot, not only to compete in a knock out competition at the end, but also to play football and complete an assault course to get to the final.

After school, lunchtimes or even during lessons, students take their own simple concept through to finished robot - ready for action - picking up key skills in a unique, fun and exciting project.

Each month they receive a visit and time is spent developing their ideas into working robots by the end of the project.

Given a budget, a weight allowance and a set of challenges the robot must undertake, they are faced with real life problems, such as budget and time constraints that they must solve.

Not only are the students learning how to build robots through the use of electronics and mechanical skills, they are also learning how to work as a team in a fun but educational way. Working in teams gives students a big advantage as it helps to prepare them for the future and learn valuable communication skills, ready for when it’s time to leave school.

Example - RAF Waddington - Aim Higher Educational Finals

Working closely with Aim Higher, 14 schools took part and completed their final at the Waddington Air Show, along with our main Robot Wars Show.

Feather Weight Construction Workshop

A slightly different approach, 12kg Feather Weight robots can be constructed in one day or even a few hours, based on a supplied kit provided on the day by Roaming Robots. This is by far our most popular project and is regularly being run in schools all over the UK.

Students can work in a group throughout the allotted time, and by the end, have a fully functioning robot. Once the rolling chassis is working, it’s time to show the creative side! All of the main components must be protected in a “body”. This must be decorated and the robot given a name.

At the end of the day/session, a small in-house competition is run. Groups are marked for teamwork, planning, organisation and overall performance of the finished robot.

The winning groups are awarded their own robot kit, which can be taken back into school to be built and used within the technology department or robot wars club.

This robot can also take part in our Robot Wars events around the UK, entitling the team to free entry to events.

Heavy Weight Project

For the even more advanced and technically minded…. the real challenge!!! Robot Wars mean machines, seen on the TV, weigh 100kg. These mechanical monsters take a lot of planning and engineering, turning a pile of material into a fully functional competitive machine. With the right help in the right direction, teams can build their own robot from scratch. Normally over a whole academic year, they take the project through concept, design, build and testing stages. These robots are then able to compete in a school event, or join the rest of the competitors from the hit TV show for the UK Championships and really put them to the test!

Each project is very flexible, and is always tailored to suit budget, number of participants and venue requirements. They can each be expanded to cater for a higher number of students with extra staff and equipment; for example in the past, a whole year group of 90 students was taken over the course of a day. They were split into two big groups and further sub groups. Group A carried out a Super Ant weight Workshop while group B Constructed Feather Weight 12kg Robots.

Just before lunch a competition was held to award prizes for the best team in each. Over lunch the kits were disassembled. The two groups swapped over and they completed the second task. Again, a competition at the end and more prizes for the winning teams.

With the exception of the local Feather Weight Challenge, where the components are supplied and each school will own the robot outright, the kits/main components supplied in the majority of the projects remain the property of Roaming Robots. This keeps the costs down as schools do not have to pay for the required equipment.

All education projects are fully supported by competent Roaming Robots staff, who have many years of experience in engineering and building competitive robots for Robot Wars. All our staff are covered by our £5 million liability insurance and full risk assessments are available upon request.